We Gardena in geardagum
by unperfectwolf
Summary: We have heard of the glory in bygone days. With the team scattered, it's going to be a interesting year. Coda to The Beginning In The End in 15 different points of view.


**We Gardena in geardagum (We have heard of the glory in bygone days)**  
**By** unperfectwolf  
**Rated** pg13  
**Fandom, Paring:** Bones, Het: Canon to show (Booth/Brennan, Hodgins/Angela, Sweets/Daisy, Jared/Padme)  
**Summary:** With the team scattered, it's going to be a interesting year. Coda to The Beginning In The End in 15 different points of view.  
**Disclaimer:** lies and libel.  
**Notes:** 4k words. Coda to 5x22, "The Beginning In The End". yay bones fic. First finished bones fic. Spoilers through the S5 ending. Like, to the last second. Written right after it aired. Title from Beowulf, the epic poem. Thanks to Clex for the cheering and Mary for the screaming about this show.

**We Gardena in geardagum (We have heard of the glory in bygone days)**

The men teased him about the picture of Bones he kept in his helmet, as much as they were able to tease someone a few ranks up. He was a legend to these boys, and him coming there hadn't done anything but fuel that. So they teased him, but it was respectful and filled with a good amount of awe.

Of course, there was that the awe may have been somewhat because Bones was absolutely gorgeous.

Still, the boys teased him about the picture of Bones that he kept tucked in next to the one of Parker. They never said much about the few phone calls he got to make, what with the shitty access to sat phones and the way he had to split his call time between his kid back in the states and his girl, off somewhere where she had to fight with shitty access to sat phones too.

He never joined in when the boys told their stories of their girls. Some of them got a little on the raunchy side, but for the most part, these stories were of the things they missed the most—being close to someone, having someone who understood you, being able to go home and find that person there.

He and Bones hadn't had that in the traditional sense, but they'd been close, maybe as close as they'd ever get. But he hoped that maybe someday, when this god-forsaken year was over, they might have more.

* * *

Daisy was a comfort she never really expected. Back at the Jeffersonian, it had been hard for her to really wrap her mind around the way Daisy Wick lived her life, but in the jungle, surrounded by people who didn't understand the way _she_ worked, and who kept getting in the way, Daisy's presence was most welcome.

It didn't take long for those who were there to see that while some of them far outclassed Daisy in credentials, that she preferred Daisy to any of them. They gave Daisy a bit of a hassle over it at the beginning, but there was too much to do and so little time that, for the most part, they partnered together without comment.

Her attachment to Daisy gained a few raised eyebrows, but that wasn't anything compared to when she actually used her sat phone time. Those that had worked with her in the past had told the others, and everyone had just assumed she would work for weeks on end and not realize the passing time in the rest of the world like she'd always done before. This time, not so much. She noticed the passing days and weeks and measured them in the time between her calls to Booth.

She made a few calls to Angela when her turn with the phone came up and Booth wouldn't have access, and a few times she called Parker because she knew he would be missing his calls to his father just as much.

During one of her talks with Parker, the man waiting in line, one Dr. Henry Estrada, was staring at her like she might have grown another few heads as she toned down all of her stories so that they were more to the age requirements of Parker. She didn't doubt that he would like the real ones, but she wasn't sure Rebecca would, and she knew Rebecca could take Parker's phone privileges away. While she didn't know how much she was relying on these calls, she knew she didn't want to have to face that reality and so she complied with social norms.

No one at the dig site commented on this, even though she knew it got around. But the whispers and the stares, things she would have been oblivious to before Booth, told her otherwise. And instead of annoying her like they might have at one time, they just made her smile.

* * *

Everyone stopped by to tell him what was going on. They all had exciting news, good things to say, and then, once the announcements were over, places to be. Sweets stuck around, which he could deduct was because of his breakup with Daisy, but everyone else was so busy with plans that they didn't have a whole lot of time.

Dr. Brennan sent him letters and photos. Her letters were detailed, and they noted some weird things about the people she worked with, things she never would have noticed when he first started to work with her. Things he didn't think he would have noticed.

Angela and Hodgins sent him a postcard once a week. He was collecting postcards from all over France and other parts of Europe, and quite enjoyed the strange map they made on the wall across the cell from his bed.

Booth sent him terse letters, but he could read between the lines. He'd been there, and he knew. He knew Dr. Brennan knew as well, but he knew Booth would never send her anything that might tell her just how bad it was there.

Cam came and saw him once a week like clockwork. She brought him mac and cheese, scanned at the gate for anything foreign. Sweets came every two weeks and stayed for a long time, sometimes playing Catan with him, or sometimes letting him help sort out details of other people's lives.

Apparently, being in a locked psych ward gave you perspective.

* * *

She worried about everyone, but traveling around Europe and living in Paris and going back to this kind of lifestyle made the world blur together. Sometimes she would get a call from Brennan and wonder why she called her so soon again, as that wasn't her style, only to realize it had been weeks.

She kept in touch with Cam via email and helped fine tune one of her programs for the FBI over the web, but for the most part she let her husband—_her husband!_—take her wherever the wind blew.

They rented a place in Paris, a tiny place with a great view and a café across the street and a market just down the way. And then they traveled, making it back every now and then, but roaming, like she'd always kind of wanted to with someone she loved.

And yet, there, in the back of her mind, was the image of the best time in her life, her whole family—Brennan, Booth, Cam, Sweets, even the interns—all together, working to do good for the world.

* * *

She retreated into her daughter with everyone else gone. She tried to break in a new anthropologist, but she just couldn't make any kind of connection like the one she'd had with Dr. Brennan.

Of course, nor did anyone else. The interns had all asked if their internship could be put on hold for a year while they pursed other lines of study until the return of Dr. Brennan. Cam agreed and signed off on the paperwork. Wendell still stopped by every now and then, mostly so that he could bring her lunch or something. She wondered a little, but they spent the entire time talking about everyone else.

She ran into Clark in town one day, and they had discussed the return of everyone like it was a sure thing, a set date, like everyone had gone hiking for the day and would be back the next day.

Goodman called from whatever rock he'd been hiding under and asked how things were, with the shakedown. She assured him things were still going, though slower, and that once everyone returned it would be fine.

The FBI wanted the same thing they'd had before, but she and Caroline told them it wasn't going to happen. And it didn't. No agent and no anthropologist could get along and get things done like Booth and Brennan. They were a force of nature no one could stop.

Michelle worried about her. She could tell. But neither said anything, and Michelle let her spend more time with her and even went out with her a few Fridays instead of with friends.

She had the day they'd promised to be back circled on every calendar she'd seen since they left. Her mental countdown wasn't just for the return of her people, but of her family.

* * *

She had hit the nail on the head, she decided. She told them it wasn't going to be so easy to slip away from what they had. Nor, she knew, would it be easy to slip back in. But they would do it, eventually, and maybe what they came up with would be better for them, and better for her. She still needed their slam dunk cases, the air-tight she got only from them.

When the FBI had proposed a new team to her, she'd scoffed. Told them to put the cases involving bones to the side to wait for Booth and his Bones to get back from traipsing all over the world and when they got back, they would take care of them.

Of course, they didn't listen to her or Saroyan and the two of them had had to clean up a few messes. But that didn't mean a whole lot.

The fact that the two of them went out for drinks a few times a month, did. But it meant that they were missing vital pieces of their world, two of them stuck in backwards places in the middle of something big. And with those two, the king and the queen of their set, everything else was out of place and not following the rules.

But, she knew they'd be back. They'd be back and she was hoping for better than ever.

* * *

She hadn't felt dread like that since before Parker was born. As much as she and Seeley had fought, she hadn't wanted him stuck some place between death and hell. She hadn't wanted him out there feeling responsible for the lives of young boys destined to die by the hand of the enemy he'd already fought too many times.

Parker didn't really get it. He knew his Dad was off being a hero, and that Dr. Bones went away at the same time to look at really old bones to tell about the history of humans. He was nearly as excited about that as he was about the idea of his dad being a hero.

She let him talk to Dr. Brennan when she called. The woman sounded tired and confused, so she let her talk to her son and tell him what she knew had to be the most factually incorrect stories to ever leave the woman's mouth.

Parker had asked if he could grow up and hunt bones like Dr. Bones someday, and his teacher had sent a note home asked who Bones was. She had sent one back, citing his father's partner, and the teacher had let the matter drop.

Nothing like a father in the war to keep the questions from coming.

She had hated sharing Parker sometimes, but this hadn't been what she wanted. She sometimes missed the quiet she got when her son was with his father, and she sometimes missed how excited he was to show his father a new something-or-other that she'd never shown interest in.

She was counting down the days until Seeley's return for her son's sake, and Parker was counting down the days before his Dad and his Dr. Bones came back, with presents.

* * *

They knew something was up. The Fed and the Bone Lady hadn't come in in weeks, and everyone else usually stopped outside and looked in, but didn't come in. Finally, one of them came in, the geeky one with all those degrees, and they asked him what was going on.

Deployed to Afghanistan, he told them. On a dig site in Indonesia. Half way around the world from there and another leap from each other.

How long, they asked. A year, he told them.

Six months in and the new girl didn't really understand their references. When they made mention of the two, and their cohorts and all the antics they got up to, the new girl looked like maybe she was taking their words with a grain of salt.

But they'd be back in their seats where they'd been meeting for years, back with all of their sidekicks and drama and talk of dead bodies and murder to give the rest of their customers something to talk about.

And then, she'd understand. Then she'd get it.

* * *

She had really wanted Dr. Brennan to go with her. She knew Dr. Brennan was the best suited for the job, and, besides that, she'd learned _so much_ from working with her. She knew that if she went on this dig with Dr. Brennan she would come back with more knowledge than she'd dreamed of.

She knew, though, that she'd put her foot in it with the comment about Booth. And she knew that the whole idea was supposed to help Dr. Brennan make the decision to go, but she thought it might have made it harder.

But Booth decided to go, and so Dr. Brennan said yes, and then they were in Indonesia. And, as much as she wanted to marry Lance, was devastated by the thought of him moving on while she was gone, she couldn't help be feel that if he couldn't understand how much this meant to her personally and professionally, then maybe they weren't suited for each other.

Dr. Brennan didn't comment on it, but she let her get away with talking far more than she usually allowed. She wasn't sure if it was because of Lance, or because of Dr. Brennan's situation with Booth, but eventually she settled down all on her own. It was interesting, having to regulate herself instead of someone else doing it for her. She knew Lance would have had a fancy name for it, but she found she didn't really want to know it.

Maybe they were better off.

* * *

He wasn't quite sure what to do with his prize team split up all across the world. In the beginning, when he'd taken over Booth and Brennan, he'd been really unsure as to what to do with an Ex-Ranger Agent who was self-partnered with a forensic anthropologist. There was no protocol for this, no rule book to follow.

So he'd pretty much written his own rules. He'd given them free reign and only helped when they needed it, thought every time he got called in for backup it seemed like Booth saved the day before anyone could even lift a finger to help them out. Booth was a bit of an over achiever like that.

When Temperance had decided to go off for a year, she hadn't talked to him about it. She'd called him up and told him she wouldn't be seeing him anymore, on account of her being in Indonesia. He'd been silent for a moment, caught off guard, and by the time he could even think to say something back, she'd hung up.

Rumor had it she'd talked to Booth first. In fact, if you believed Lydia from the bullpen outside Booth's office, Temperance had told Booth that if he said don't go, she wouldn't. He wasn't sure he believed it, but there was enough of a ring of truth to it to make him question it.

He was under no illusions that when Temperance came back they would fall right into the swing of things again. He was actually pretty sure when she broke up with him, it wasn't just for the year, but forever. He didn't know what told him that, but it might have been the rumor from reception that Booth had left base without a pass to say goodbye.

He hadn't worked for the FBI in years, but he still heard things. Young Sweets called him often enough, and he still had a few friends rattling around in the Hoover building. But this was so shocking he wasn't sure he'd heard right. He called a second friend to confirm, but both Booth and Dr. Brennan were truly gone for the year.

The more he thought about, however, the more it made sense. He'd known the two of them were fighting off one hell of a relationship, and maybe this year apart would do them some good.

He hoped, wherever they were, that they were still talking. For all their issues as partners, they'd done each other a world of good. Maybe they would turn out from this all right.

* * *

He heard about it through the military grape vine. He might have been down, but he wasn't out. People still talked to him. He got a lot of respect for not giving a rat's ass about the consequences of the actions he took to save his older brother. The Rangers especially liked him still, since Seeley would be one of them forever, no matter what he said.

He thinks he might have known before they approached his brother. He didn't say anything until Seeley told him, and the only thing he said to it was that he knew. He didn't know how to have this conversation with his brother, since he'd give a lot to get that call.

But it was different for him. Seeley had a kid, had Temperance to think about. And since Temperance was going to be on the other side of the world and in a bit of danger herself, he wasn't really sure how his big brother was going to be able to handle it.

Except he would, because he was his big brother, and no matter how old he got, he was still pretty sure his big brother could do _anything_.

Padme was a little mad because he wanted to put the wedding off until Seeley could be in it. She gave in, since he'd given in on everything else, and they pushed out their plans. It wasn't the end of the world, and he really did want his big brother there.

Pops wasn't too happy about Seeley or Temperance going off, but he didn't do more than mutter. The holidays were going to be quiet this year.

* * *

He was not a happy father when he found out. He called Russ to let him know, then felt the urge to blow things up. He didn't do anything but sit on his stoop and drink beer, though. He was still there when Russ showed up.

He wasn't sure how Booth could let her go. When he found out Booth was going to Afghanistan for a year, it clicked into place a little bit more. But it still wasn't right, didn't feel good. He didn't like being away from her, not after so many years where he couldn't see her.

He talked to her a few times, but she was usually distracted by something. Sometimes she mentioned Booth or Parker, so he knew she was keeping in touch with the real world, but her finds in Indonesia were extraordinary. Even he knew they were, and he'd been out of the AP Science game a long time.

Still, he wanted his baby home safe and sound, and he wanted it to happen right then. It wasn't going to, he knew. Not much would make her come back early. And those things that would didn't bear thinking about.

* * *

He had never really done the Europe thing. He'd done plenty of other trust fund things, but he'd always been into school, getting multiple degrees, and by the time he was done, he was getting a job and analyzing slime. It wasn't that Europe hadn't held a certain allure, because it had, but he'd just had better ways to waste a month or two.

He was glad he hadn't done it, now. The only way to experience it was with Angela, in her arms, following her to her favorite spots and finding new ones. Sure, he'd have had a good time before, but there was nothing like taking his wife to a small little bistro he'd found on accident and watching her face light up.

He missed everyone. He even missed his job. He talked to Brennan a few times when she called Angela, but for the most part he corresponded via email to people who needed to talk to him and read Cam's weekly update to everyone. It wasn't much, just told about her and those she still saw and the highlights of the week. Once it had been the neighbors dog escaping and ending up in Cam's gated backyard.

He made sure they sent Zack a postcard every week. He felt bad that he wouldn't see him for a year after so long of seeing him once a week. Zack told him he didn't mind and they started playing risk online, but it just wasn't the same.

Yeah, Europe was amazing, but he wouldn't mind going back home to everyone.

* * *

He missed Daisy. He missed her more than he could have imagined, but he also knew that he didn't miss her enough that they should have been getting married soon. He missed Dr. Brennan and Booth and Angela and Hodgins. He spent a lot of time with Zack, sometimes staying so long they had to kick him out.

One of the guards made a crack about giving him a cot.

He survived, though, taking on more cases for the FBI and taking care of things he pushed to the side to work on Booth and Brennan. Now, with them over seas, he had more time for different lines of inquiry.

He had lunch with Wendell and Fisher a few times a month. They even conned Clark into coming once, and Arastoo came with them more often than not.

It was almost like they were mourning. But in this case, those that were gone would be returning, and it wouldn't be a case of reanimation for anyone but the team as a whole.

And damn, if he couldn't wait for that day.

* * *

He'd never worked with Booth before, but he'd seen what he could do. He was a lifer—he'd joined up the day after he turned 18 and never looked back. But Booth was different. Yeah, he was damn good at his job. The Rangers wouldn't have come looking back for him if he wasn't. But he was reluctant to be there, his mind on some girl halfway around the world again, digging up bones.

The idea of Seeley Booth settling down was a little on the off-putting side. The idea of him with a kid wasn't so hard to imagine, especially one from a relationship like the one he had with the kid's mom. But settling down? That wasn't something that the legend of Booth would do.

And yet, it seemed to fit him. He did a little quick research once on Temperance Brennan, and damn if she wasn't good. The idea of Booth partnering with someone who was just as good as he was in her own field made sense, and if the statistics were anything to go on, these two made an amazing team.

The Rangers approached him about keeping Booth another year, but he told them it'd be a bad idea if they tried to force it. They'd raised some eyebrows, but hadn't pushed. And watching as Booth talked on the phone, he couldn't help but be glad he'd told them that. Booth was already planning his first dinner back with his whole family.

They'd gotten a year out of him, pushing the words duty and your nation needs you. But they wouldn't get another, not while that little boy and that woman still breathed somewhere on this earth.


End file.
